a stay-at-home fourth

for the past several years, we have up and left to either Southern California or Utah for the fourth of July. this year, the timing didn't work out to be down there as a family for the fourth, so we stayed local. initially i wasn't too keen on the idea- but it surprised me with its awesomeness.

a couple nights before the fourth, us and some friends headed up the street from our house to the high school where a Community Church puts on this super-patriotic fourth-of-July celebration called the "Singing Flag". it was filled with dancing, music, tons of people from the community, and fireworks. the girls loved it, i was pleasantly impressed- and so was M. all in all, a success- and a tradition we'll try to keep up in the future.

{side note: this picture is NOT of Alice and daddy- but of Alice and her friend's daddy, Chris- who she has a major crush on. just look at that lil twitterpated smile.}

the morning of the fourth, we decked ourselves out in our red, white and blue (the girls looked adorably patriotic) and we headed to our Ward Breakfast/kid parade first thing. first we enjoyed pancakes and other breakfast deliciousness. i don't know why but pancakes made by the millions feels so festive to me. maybe it reminds me of Kaysville's pancake breakfast? man i miss Kaysville.

and then the girls proudly scooted along (with the rest of the primary children) in their plasma car/bike all decorated in balloons, streamers and ribbons. it's funny how they were just going in a circle around the parking lot, and yet felt so proud tinkering at a snail's pace (well, Alice was, anyway. and did you know that pushing a plasma car is a huge pain in the butt? well, back actually. but that's not the phrase, so, you know.). the girls loved every minute of it.

 straight from the breakfast, we headed to the cutest little town, Piedmont, where we watched the cutest little parade ever (which i guess could be expected from the cutest little town). it wasn't anything huge or extravagant like some tend to be- but it was just the right amount of everything. we met up with some friends there - and the littles were showered with candy and stuffed animals and other goodies (well, when the big kids weren't stampeding our little runts for their treasures). i think this parade was my favorite part of the day- because it felt so festive and fourth-ish.

{side note: how cute is this little impromptu dance party by Tate and Alice?}

the fourth wouldn't feel like the fourth without swimming and bbq-ing- so we went straight to Grandma and Grandpa's house for just that. some friends joined us there -- including my dear friend Sandi, who moved to Utah the end of last summer.

isn't it the best to be reunited with friends? it seriously felt like she never left. until she did leave again and i miss her all over again. Sandi, move back already. Ellie and Sandi's little boy Cale were best best friends when they lived here- and it was so cute to see them playing together again, in slightly bigger bodies, and slightly older attitudes. i even overheard Ellie say to Cale (totally unprovoked, might i add), "Cale, don't go back to Utah again. just stay here." i wish that we could get together more often, like the good ole days.

 {side note: this photo sequence of Ellie and Cale makes me smile so so big. that expression after the hug was when Sandi and i asked them to kiss. "Ughhhhhh mom, you're so embarrassing," was written all over that. it made me kind of excited to embarrass her as a teenager someday.}

by the time we were all pooped out of swimming and eating, it was time for fireworks- so we made our way out to College Park- "the place" for fireworks around here. the girls were so cute and amazed watching them pop and boom in the sky. Alice would clap- and Ellie would squirm till she stuffed her face with another piece of candy, and then say things like "those glittery ones are my favorite!" with a mouthful of chocolate. classy. i think that those little moments are what i love so much about the fourth- that you get an awesome "party day" with your family and friends, and then get to snuggle under glittery awesomeness at the end of it.

all in all, an awesomely awesome day, that fourth of july 2012.
so grateful and proud to be an American.

xoxo